[Mechanics] Rules of the Battle (Rules and Schedule)

[savoylen]

Schedule Round 0: 08-SEP thru 1-OCT Round 0 Review by Hosts and Judges Round 1: 1-OCT thu 6-OCT Round 1 Judging: 7-OCT through 13-OCT Round 2: 14-OCT through 20-OCT Round 2 Judging: 21-OCT through 27-OCT Round 3: 28-OCT thru 3-NOV Round 3 Judging: 4-NOV thru 10-NOV Round 4: 11-NOV thru 17-NOV Round 4 Judging: 18-NOV thru 24-NOV Take a Breath Week: 25-NOV through 1-DEC Round 5: Finals Round: 2-DEC thru 8-DEC Round 5 Judging 9-DEC thru 15-DEC Final Announcement: 16-DEC

What is new in 2024?
Read this spoiler button first if you are familiar with Iron DM and want to find out what is different for the 2024 competition.

 

• A big effort was made to pull in some 'new' faces for the judging panel.
• We've started a rotation for Hosts who will generally serve two years (after winning their year). The Chairman will serve until killed or you find someone better who will serve or be of service.
• Initially, ingredients will be public (not secreted) but may still not be directly discussed until after the round is over.
• Players from previous years will use their IMD rating for seeding.
• NEW Resource Thread - will include helpful aids (like the BB table guide, etc.)

We have new signage/shields (headers for each area to help you find your way around) !


We have new physical (real life) trophies! One for the Champion and a new Runners Up one as well!

Iron DM: An Overview of the Iron DM Game

1. Qualifiers--Round Zero
   Contestants will be selected from entries made in the initial Round Zero phase of competition. Everyone who puts together a qualifying entry may participate in the tournament.
2. The Chair assigns match-ups for each round.
   Each round will have a different pairing, determined by the Chair.
3. Each round-entry will be given a prompt and a list of ingredients to use.
   Ingredients typically draw from categories of monsters, human NPCs, locations, objects, and abstract concepts. In later rounds, the Chair may include “bonus ingredients” in the list. Contestants may use as few or as many of these bonus ingredients in an attempt to earn bonus points.
4. Ingredients should be highlighted in entries.
   Players should make prominent use of ingredients. This shows creativity and proves an entry is designed specifically for this competition. Players may add any other additional elements to their entries, but the use of too much filler to bring unrelated objects together will likely lead to a judgment against the creation.
5. The length of an entry is of utmost importance.
   In order to keep a level playing field, entries over the word limit will be penalized. Entries that go over a significant amount may be adjudicated a 'forfeit' for that round but not withdrawn from the tournament. The Chair and judges will be relying on this website to count words, so it is recommended that players do the same. Do not worry about supplying stat blocks or other mechanical information, and don't include images, or outside links.
6. Word limits are enforced!
   Word-limit length is 500 words for Round Zero, 500 to 1,500 (scaling up each round) words for Rounds 1-4, and 3,000 words for the final rounds.
7. Take your time, proofread, and start early!
   Contestants have a week to create their works. This means that no matter what time zone, availability throughout the week, or surprise visits / assignments / late shifts, contestants should have plenty of time to complete the adventure. It should not be left to the last day, though--it is advised to work on it early, and have enough time to go over it once or twice before submitting it. If a contestant plans to be out of action for a week or more over the next month or two, they should discuss this with the Chair directly.
8. Secret Text and spoiler button your posts.
   Obviously, one contestant has to post first. Ensure that a submitted post is hidden with a secret tab. Direct the secret text to "Savoylen."
9. The Chair reserves the right to disqualify any entry due to:
   • Being illegible Poor formatting or atrocious spelling and/or grammar, which makes reading the entry too difficult to be worth it. (An entry has to be pretty bad for this to happen, but still, the warning stands.) In that case, the player will be judged as "forfeit" that particular game but not withdrawn from the competition -- meaning they can compete in the next round.
   • Editing post-deadline Once submission deadline has passed, any editing is grounds for an immediate forfeiture that round - no entry post should be edited, in any way. If something is so terrible that is has to be fixed, PM the chairman about it.
   • Being late An entry posted even one minute past the deadline will forfeit that game without withdrawal, unless the Chair sees a reason for an extension to be called (boards going down, for example).
   • Not posting in a round A player who does not post in a round is both forfeited from the round and withdrawn from the competition unless there is an extreme circumstance. PM the Chair immediately as soon as you are able if you have to miss a round.
10. Do not comment on ingredients.
    Comments and questions are welcome from those watching; however, commenting on ingredients before a match is completed can shade the judgments--or even the entries. So, please leave discussion until after the match is finished. READ THIS FOR THE FINE PRINT
11. All judgments aim to be constructive, helpful and final.
    Judgments are meant to be constructive and helpful. Judgments in the first four rounds will be Win-Loss-Draw with 2-3 lines of suggestion for improvement. Final-round judges will be made on the rubric system with points and +/- comments on each section of criteria.
12. The first four rounds are a non-elimination, Swiss-sys format
    This is a non-elimination portion of the competition, meaning as long as the participant completes the round, they may continue on to the next round. Starting with Round 1, contestants will play head-to-head against another player using a Sys-swiss pairing system.
13. The participants with the most "win" points after Round 4 move on to the final rounds.
    And then from the final round(s), one winner will be crowned Iron DM 2023.
14. Iron DM ranking points will be rewarded.
    All participants receive Iron DM ranking points. These points will be greater for those who win their rounds, advance to finals, or win the title match. Iron GM ranking points remain with the player and may be used in following years to determine seed rankings.
15. Enjoy!
    Yes, this is a competition. Yes, there will be a winner (and so, by definition, losers as well). But the organizers are hoping to create an arena that brings together players from across the site's sections and threads who might not otherwise meet, and use this gathering as an opportunity to learn from one another, share tips, and applaud skills.

- The Hosts (bananabadger, savoylen, Strangemund)

[savoylen]

Ingredients Rule (New for 2024) Rounds will be open to public viewing on day one instead of last year’s standard of remaining private until the round’s deadline date. That means everyone– entrants and audience members included– will be privy to the round’s themes and ingredients on the very same day the round is announced. You may bemoan, you may laugh, you may scratch your head at the round’s theme and ingredients all you like in the Studio Audience thread– just do not discuss how you will use the ingredients. Details on what you’d do with the ingredients should be kept to yourself until after the round is finished. This rule goes for both participants and audience members. If this rule is broken once, we will revert back to the previous year’s standard of keeping everything private until the Judge Round begins. Example DO’s on Ingredient Discussion: “Aw man! I don’t even like math! Why did the ingredient for this round have to be imaginary numbers?” “Can we swap ingredients? Please? I’d rather have Group 2’s than be forced to figure out a way to make a mango and a yacht work!” “Oh I am very excited about having timber wolves as an ingredient! They’re my favorite animals!” “Geez! These ingredients are super hard! Best of luck to you guys on figuring out what you want to do! We’re cheering for you!” Example DON’Ts on Ingredient Discussion: “I know exactly what I’d do with a banana and a ship! First, I’d have the banana become a sentient monster that is laying siege on the crewmates, because it went bad due to being stored with some cursed items.” “It is so obvious what you could do with a banana. Especially with this round’s theme of being about humorous NPCs. I’d make a guy who was made up of nothing but bananas and sold banana-specific items. Easy!” “I definitely wouldn’t put banana as the focus ingredient. Now that clown horn is the hardest ingredient to work with. I’d make it my priority to build a scenario around that and then add the other ingredients.” –- If you don’t know if a comment will break the rules, please feel free to ask any of us judges! We are trying our best to make an engaging competition where folks can have the most fun! We are here for you!